Duo Latera Ejusdem Coin
by flyingtheTARDIS
Summary: Christmas is coming up and Arthur has no idea what to get Queen Guinevere but when he consults Merlin for help, he may find that he'll have to find a present for a new Queen! But can it be a happy Christmas? A dark evil is growing, threatning all of Camelot! Merthur but starts as Arwen and Merlin/OC MA: Violence, language, sex scenes
1. Snowy Days in Cheery Times

**Merthur Fanfic**

**Duo Latera Ejusdem Coin**

**Chapter One: Snowy Days in Cheery Times**

Arthur sighed. He was having your average husband problems this Christmas. Well, if average consisted of finding the perfect gift for the Queen of Camelot. It was their first Christmas together and he wanted to get Guinevere something special. Something meaningful. But that's difficult when you're trying to get the _Queen_ something. She had all the money in the world and she could have anything that she fancied. Arthur looked out the window. He could see the children of a visiting nobleman playing in the snow in the courtyard. The snow was so beautiful, it glistening sunlight off its white colour. The sunset was casting a bright orange and pink hue in the sky. It looked absolutely brilliant. It was getting close to dinner time. Since Gwen was out with friends this evening (most likely drinking fine wines and gossiping about womanly things such as dresses, jewelry, and _knights_), he would be eating alone. That didn't sound appealing. Maybe he could invite Merlin to dine with him when he came around. He knew it would be selfish to let the old man Gaius eat all by his lonesome but it would be okay, right? It's not like he was taking Merlin away forever. Just for one night. So that was it. As if on cue, Merlin came bursting in, whistling and in a joyous mood. Wait, he wasn't…he wasn't _skipping, was he?_ "Well aren't you in a boisterous mood? What happened with you?" he asked. Merlin blushed a bright red. "Oh, um…it doesn't matter, not really…" the boy mumbled. "Come on, Merlin, the one time I'm actually interested in hearing about your simple life, and you don't want to tell me. Out with it." Arthur inquired. Again, the manservant blushed. "Well, now that you ask…it's, umm, well… I met this boy! He's really sweet and kind and funny and smart. He offered for me to come to his house tonight and he wanted to make me dinner!". Immediately Arthur was filled with anger. _What was he doing with Merlin! Doesn't he know not to mess with the King's manservant! My manservant! Wait, where was all this coming from? Why would I care about who Merlin took interest in?_ "Oh, so that's why you're so giggly. Well, I see that you really like him. Go have some fun, it's been awhile since you've gone out. I'll clean this mess myself. Just go get my dinner from the kitchens and you can leave for the night." "Really? Thanks, Arthur, you're really too nice." This made Arthur's chest tighten. What was going on with him? Merlin walked out the door and Arthur walked over to his boots. He picked them up and put them near his bed. _This is good for Merlin_, he thought. Meeting new people and finding men. Merlin was so nervous when he first told Arthur. Merlin was so afraid that he would reject him for his sexuality that he packed his bags! Arthur, though, did not mind at all. He explained to Merlin that, even though he never admitted it, he was his best friend and he wasn't going anywhere. Merlin was so relieved that he actually hugged Arthur. He was reluctant at first, but then embraced Merlin, like he needed. It was actually nice, Merlin's skinny but warm arms around him. It was different.

Christmas was coming in 15 days. It might seem like quite a bit of time but for Christmas, it feels like last minute. Arthur still didn't know what to get. Maybe he should ask Morgana. She's a girl, she should know these things. Plus, Guinevere was her maidservant for a long time. They were and are close friends. Arthur finished up his dinner, wonderfully cooked pork chops with stewed vegetables and sweet cinnamon buttered bread. He walked out the door and went on his way to Morgana's room. She may be mischievous but when it comes to the important stuff, she's very helpful and caring. He strolled down the corridor and arrived at the Lady Morgana's door. He tapped on it four times. From inside he heard a scream. "MORGANA!" he yelled as he burst into the bedroom. Morgana was standing, looking as if she saw a ghost. "Morgana! What happened?" he asked. "It's…it's nothing. I just…I had a dream last night. There was a strange voice. It said 'He will knock four times'. It was about a lonely man's 'song ending'. I'm sure it was nothing. But it felt so real…" she whispered. "I hope it was nothing. Anyway, I needed to ask you something." Arthur said. "As you know, Christmas is coming." Morgana shot him a sly smile. "Is the King having troubles on a present for his Queen?" "Yes, he is. Now I need your help. What should I get Guinevere?" "Hmm, well, I think this is a puzzle to solve on your own. You can't come here expecting me to tell you what to gift her for Christmas, or when to remind you of your upcoming anniversary. Don't you have Merlin help you with these things anyway?" I groaned. Ugh, Morgana is evil. "Oh come on, he can't help me. He's not a girl…fully." "Oh leave the poor boy alone. He's already had enough teasing from the knights. And Gwaine's even worse." She stated. "What do you mean 'worse'? He's a great friend to Merlin." "I mean that Gwaine will go after _anything_ he can get his hands on. Including the one and only, the Innocent Merlin. God, do you pay attention to anyone but yourself?" "Wait, he's what! He isn't going after Merlin! Thanks for telling me so soon!" Arthur snarled sarcastically. He ran out the door and down the corridor. Before he knew it, he had arrived at the training grounds. He saw Gwaine in a sword fight with Lancelot. "GWAINE! GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE! NOW!" Arthur roared. This surprised Gwaine so much that he dropped his sword. Lancelot took note of this and kicked at Gwaine, who fell to the ground with an "Oof!" Gwaine had never seen Arthur this mad before and was immediately taking back whatever the hell he did. Did he flirt with Gwen and not even notice? Arthur was seething with rage. He didn't know why he cared so much but he did. He had to protect Merlin, consequences be damned. Gwaine got up from the ground, but in vain as Arthur pushed him on the ground. "Leave him alone, or I swear, you will find yourself unable to flirt anymore when your head is on a stick." Arthur growled. Gwaine swallowed. "Wh-who might you mean, sire?" "You know who, you pervert. Merlin! If I find you have touched him in any way, you'll wish you were dead." Arthur shoved him back to the ground. He stormed off, leaving Lancelot and Gwaine stunned.

The next morning, Arthur woke to a flash of bright light. "Rise and shine Arthur!" "Ugh, Merlin, are you _trying_ to blind me? Just give me 5 more minutes." "Nope, I can't. You've got to meet with Sir Dulac today. You would just fall back to sleep for a century!" Arthur sat up. He saw his manservant, with his dark raven hair and vampire pale skin. It might look a bit strange to others but Arthur was…drawn to it. It looked so- _Stop it, what am I thinking?_ He mentally shook his head and got out of the bed. Merlin had the room looking very clean and had his breakfast waiting on the table. _Mmm, French Toast, sausages, bacon, and eggs, my favorite_. He sat down in the chair, picked up his fork, and picked up and took a bite of one of the wonderfully seasoned and juicy sausages. He was about to chomp on one of the bacon pieces when he saw Merlin was about to leave, and he remembered about his confrontation with Gwaine last night. "Merlin?" Merlin turned on the spot, slightly annoyed since he still had work from Gaius (stupid leeches). "Yes, Sire?" "I wanted to ask you about…Gwaine" Arthur drawled. "Umm, Gwaine? What about him?" "Has he been giving you…trouble?" "Uh, what do you mean by that?" "I mean, has he been, well, you know…touching you?" "Oh God no, Arthur, no, he hasn't at all!" The boy was blushing furiously and had a smile on his face. There was an uncomfortable silence for some time that felt like hours. "Oh, okay then…What about this…boy you met? Because I think you should be really careful about people and you never know what's up their sleeve and he might try to force you into do things that I think you shouldn't be doing and-" "Arthur, enough! I don't want you inquiring about my love life and I'm sure as hell have no idea about why you even care!" With that, Merlin ran off. "Merlin, wait! Please-ah, fuck it. He's already gone." _And I'm not sure why either_


	2. A Growing Threat

**A/N: Hi everybody! Sorry, I would've posted this last night but I got buried in homework. Grr, damn you Government! But here's the new Chap chap! I know it's shorter, but still. I like this chapter. And they will get longer as the story progresses. So, I hope you likey and please, please review! It will motivate me to not completely abandon the story!**

**Chapter 2: A Growing Threat**

"Your Majesty" Sir Dulac bowed. "Rise, Sir Dulac. All I want to know is what has happened for this meeting to be called" Arthur said. Dulac rose and said "Sire, a group of our spies have found information concerning Cenred. It's…it's not good." "Well, then. Is he planning an attack on Camelot? He couldn't take us if he tried, especially if he came to attack the castle. We have never lost the Citadel." "Sire…we have information that…he might've gained a powerful ally. Count Harken."

Arthur froze. _Vampires? But even Cenred wouldn't associate with them, would he?_ "Vampires? Do you know what they're planning?" "Your Highness, there have been rumors that he is building a new army. An army of the Undead." "Thank you. I want to gather as much information on Count Harken and the army as we can. Have more spies infiltrate his kingdom. I want to know their every move as soon as it happens." _I don't know much about vampires. Maybe Gaius will know something about it with those books concerning magical creatures he has._ Arthur walked out of the throne room and traveled across the castle to the old man's quarters. He knocked on the door and then walked in.

Gaius and Merlin were there, brewing some kind of concoction. "Sire. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Gaius asked. "Gaius, I'm afraid I have some grave news. I had a meeting with Sir Dulac, as Merlin knows." Merlin nodded his head with a serious face on. "He told me that some spies have found that Cenred has been consorting with Count Harken." "The vampire? Why is that?" Merlin inquired. "There have been whispers that he is constructing an army of vampires. He could be planning to attack Camelot."

"Oh God help us all! If he does, I'm afraid that there will be many lives lost. Vampires are one of the most powerful forces on the Earth. They are pure evil." Gaius exclaimed. "Arthur, why would he be fraternizing with a vampire?" Merlin asked "It would be absolutely horrid to turn his soldiers into the monsters and his people would rebel! There's not even a snowball's chance in hell that they would live under a king like that. There would be riots and protests from all of his people." Arthur took a breath in. "I would think that they wouldn't have much of a choice. Cenred is a heartless man and if any of those started, he probably wouldn't hesitate to put them down. He might even use the vampires to tear their throats out. Gaius, I came here to see what you know about vampires. We need to plan for an attack. How do we take them down?"

Gaius fidgeted. "Sire, it is possible to kill a vampire. A sharp object through the heart or decapitation of the head will kill them. But unlike legends, they can bask in sunlight and are as strong as the Great Dragon's claws and as fast as the sun covers Camelot at dawn. But they are only this powerful in darkness. The sunlight saps their strength so that they are as mortal as the average man. Crosses do not make them flee, but holy water burns their skin. I will have to investigate how to make this in my books, and if there are any other methods of defense against these creatures." Gaius sighed. "This is going to be a long night Merlin."

Merlin backed up. "Oh no Gaius. I've got work to do." "What work?" "Umm, well, helping Arthur. Right?" Arthur chuckled. "Since when did you become so naïve as to think I would bail you out?" "Prat." "Idiot". Merlin smiled at the man in front of him, the sun shining at the golden hair of the King. "Merlin, I request that you come to my chambers to talk about some private matters. Merlin was curious and looked at Gaius. The old geezer had his eyebrows raised high, obviously showing the same curiosity. Merlin turned to Arthur and followed him down the stairs.

"Merlin, Christmas is coming." Merlin smirked. "Oh Sire, you're right! It completely slipped my mind!" the manservant said, sarcasm dripping off his voice. Arthur frowned. "Merlin?" "Yes?" "Shut up. Now, as I was saying, Christmas is coming. Guinevere and I haven't been married all that long, and so this is our first Christmas together. I need it to be special. But I haven't got a clue on what to get my Fair Lady. That's where you come in."

Merlin laughed. "Ahh, gift troubles. Why don't you ask Morgana?" Arthur shot him an annoyed face. "I already did. She told me to consult you. Which is seeming to be no help whatsoever." "Aww, don't get pouty with me Arthur. I, unlike yourself, am brilliant, and have the perfect gift idea for you." Merlin paused. "Go on Merlin, get on with it." he ordered impatiently.

"Okay, okay. A day's travel from here is a meadow Gaius once told me. He went there once for his lover, Alice. In the meadow is a rare breed of flowers named "_Characterem Amoris"_. This flower is part of the mysterious side of nature and is said to have grown from where Mother Nature kissed her lips upon the soil. When this flower is picked up by a person, it sprouts a little stem through the top. When the person who the owner loves most holds it, it will transform into one of the most beautiful and majestic flowers on Earth."

Arthur formed a huge grin on his face. "Merlin, I could kiss you right now!" Merlin blushed and shifted his weight a slight amount. "I don't think you would really like that much." "Oh come here!" Merlin moved over to the man and Arthur hugged him. He then said "You are a brilliant man. You are also my best friend and I am glad to know you, no matter how much I tease and poke." This made Merlin smile and giggle like a 15 year old girl the first time she's in love. Merlin pulled away. "I guess I should get back to Gaius. There's research needing to be done. See you tomorrow, yeah?" "Yeah. Goodbye."

"Arthur!" "Gwen!" Gwen ran into his arms. "Hello sweetie. Feels like I haven't seen you in years!" "Didn't drink too much last night, did you? Wouldn't want to be seen walking around with a massive hangover!" "Oh hush. Yes, I drank a bit more…alright a _lot_ more than I anticipated, but I'm fine. I had one but thankfully Gaius had predicted this too and had a draft already concocted for me. Cured it in ten minutes! Bless his soul." Arthur laughed. He kissed the back of her head. Then he lifted her up and she shouted and giggled. He brought the two of them over to their bed. He dropped her down and then lay with her. Arthur looked up and stared into her warm, brown eyes. She stared back and they stayed there for a few moments although it seemed like hours. He reached out his hand and brushed a lock of her curly dark hair out of the way.

Gwen blushed and proceeded to say "You know after all this time together, you still manage to make me feel special. No matter if it's taking time from being King to travel leagues to pick my favorite flower or giving me a small, chaste kiss before you say goodbye. It makes me feel so wonderful and lucky to be your Queen. I had just started out as a blacksmith's daughter and you had Ladies and Princesses swooning after you. But you chose me. I love you Arthur." Arthur took her hand in his and looked at her.

"Guinevere, I love you too. This is the best part of my day. Always has been. Especially after long days like today." Gwen wrapped her arm around her King's waist. "Do you want to talk about it?" Arthur took a deep breath in and exhaled. "No, not tonight. Tonight, I just want to lay here in this bed with you." And so they did, and they slept peacefully through the night. They slept until the warning bells went off and Leon burst into their room yelling

"Sire! We need you now!"

**A/N: Ooh, suspense. I promise to have the next chapter out by at least Saturday. And I know, you all probably hate Arwen. But I can't have Merlin and Arthur buttfucking in the beginning, now can I? Remember, please review! Also, go to my profile and vote on my poll!**


	3. Death, Despair, and Blood

**Chapter 3: Death, Despair, and Blood**

"Sire! We need you now!" Leon yelled.

Arthur bolted up. He jumped out of bed and approached the man. "Leon, what is it? What's wrong?"

Leon hesitated. "It's happened. One of the out-lining villages have been attacked. By vampires."

Dread filled Arthur to the brim. "Leon, how many casualties?" Leon fidgeted. "All save two. A farmer and his daughter came and warned us."

Arthur paced back and forth through the room. "Leon, thank you. If you'll excuse me, I'll get dressed and go to the throne room." Leon bowed. "Of course, Sire." The knight then walked out of the room.

"Ugh, why is this happening tonight! Of all nights! I'm sorry Gwen, but I'll have to be gone a while." Gwen frowned. "Where do you think you're going without me? The kingdom is under attack. _Our_ kingdom."

"Gwen, please, I don't want you to. I don't want you to have to worry about this tonight. Please, go back to bed." Now Gwen gave him a glare. "How do you expect me to sleep when our citizens are in danger! Who do you take me for, Arthur! Your father?" _Oh God_, she thought. _I've crossed the line right there. _

Arthur flared up with rage. "How dare you insult my father! He was a good man and a great ruler! I should throw you in the dungeons! If you were anyone else I would have you flogged and beheaded!" he shouted. Gwen started sobbing and she sat at the edge of the bed with her head in her hands. "Oh Guinevere, I-" There was a knocking at the door. Arthur and Gwen both looked up in surprise. Gwen stopped crying and Arthur yelled "Enter!" Then came in Merlin and a handsome boy he'd never met before.

xOxOxO

Merlin raised his hand at the door.

"Are you sure we should be doing this? He's the King, after all." The stranger questioned.

Merlin raised his eyebrows. "Oh hush, Henry. He's the King, yeah, but it's me. I'm his manservant, and his best friend, apart from Guinevere. Don't say that I told you that, he'll kill me and then for once in his life use magic just to kill me again. Now, we can go in and find out what's happened or we can go back to bed and die of curiosity."

Henry, the said stranger, gave him a toothy grin and wrapped his arms around the other boy's waist. "I think we should do the latter, and enjoy each other's company in the bedroom." Henry proceeded to harass Merlin by making short trails of kisses and bites along the pale boy's neck.

Merlin moaned and said "Henry…now's not…the time…we're in the castle, in the hallways, which are _public_-Oh God, do that again, that is perfect!"

Henry chuckled into his neck. "Hah! Begging now, are we? You weren't so quickly turned to this last night. I must've broke you." Merlin laughed. "Oh, shut up. Now let's go in and see what happened."

"Do we have to? We'll find out in the morning anyways, so let's go to bed. I want to try something new tonight." he said with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Nope, tonight. Come on, they wouldn't be ringing the bells if it was something important." Merlin then proceeded to knock on the door.

"Merlin! Why are you here? And whose this?" Arthur asked

"Oh, hi, how've you been, good, thanks Arthur for asking. I'm here to ask for your hand in marriage, why do you think I'm here you dollophead! The warning bells are going off in the middle of the night, which has woken up all of Camelot. And this is Henry, my, umm, well, he's the boy I told you about the other day. So, Henry, Arthur. Arthur, Henry. Now please tell us what's going on."

Arthur was filled to the brim with anger towards this boy, Henry. _What were they doing? Why is he here with Merlin? I should throttle him!_ But Arthur didn't, of course. How would that look? He shook his head. "Well, if you must know, it's...the vampires."

"Vampires! But I thought they weren't real, only creatures in fairy tales?" Henry said in an outburst.

"Ahh, I'm afraid that isn't true. They exist, although they are usually small in numbers. But Cenred has recruited a rather powerful one, named Count Harken. We have Intel that he is planning on building an army of those things."

"MERLIN! Why are you telling him this! This is strictly confidential! I could have both your heads for this!"Henry whimpered. He got down on his knees. "Please, Your Majesty, please, don't kill us! I won't tell a soul! I swear!"

Merlin grabbed his arm and pulled the boy to his feet. "Oh hush, Henry, you wimp. You may act pretty confident in bed but you sure as hell don't act it anywhere else! He won't kill you. Or me. Right Arthur?"

Arthur just went over-the-top when he heard they were _bedding_. But he kept his cool and said "Of course not. Who would clean my room, polish my armor, or muck out the stables?"

"Shut up, you prat. The stables aren't even my responsibility. Henry won't tell anyone. Now what happened with the vampires?" Arthur sat down in a chair and sighed. But Guinevere spoke up.

"It's one of the outer-lying villages. They've been attacked by vampires. Only two survived, a farmer and his daughter. It's horrible." Merlin's faced was wiped with shock. "They attacked? Today? But, how? It's not like them to attack a village, it's too big, even for their packs. It must have taken a lot of vampires. Have you spoken to the two villagers yet?" Arthur stood up.

"No, we haven't yet. Haven't got the time, all thanks to your interruption. Now let's go. You can come too, if you like." Merlin smiled and was about to reply when Henry whispered in the boy's ear.

"Sorry, love to go, but this one's very eager for me to polish _his_ armor, if you catch my drift." Merlin gave a toothy grin and Gwen gasped and covered her mouth. Arthur put his hands up in the air. "Gah, I really don't want to hear about your love life Merlin! Well, okay then. I expect to see you tomorrow, but please let me sleep in a bit, alright." Merlin smiled. "Alright then. Good bye." Merlin and Henry then walked out the door.

xOxOxO

"My Lord!"

"Rise. May I ask you and your daughter's names?" Arthur asked. "Of course. My name is Hector and this is my daughter Hedwig." Arthur laughed in his mind. _Hedwig? That sounds like something you'd name your owl, not your child._

"So then, Hector, can you describe to me what happened?" "Yes, I can. If I may ask, can my daughter be excused? It was…a very traumatic experience." "Of course. Guards, take Hedwig outside and keep her safe." The guards nodded. They led the girl out and it was only him, Guinevere, and Hector. "Now please, tell us everything you know about the attack." Gwen asked. Hector cleared his throat.

"Well, I was putting my daughter to bed. My son and wife had already gone to bed. I was telling her a bed time story when all of a sudden, I heard screams. I looked outside but couldn't see anything. I told Hedwig to wake up her brother and to go to her mother. I took hold of a sword. I thought maybe it was a gang, our village had been raided before, but we drove them off eventually. So I grabbed a sword and lit a torch and walked outside. That's when I saw them. Creatures of the dark, running around the village. I ran inside to get my family and we were running away." Hector paused. His eyes started tearing up. "We made it to the edge of the woods when I heard a scream, I turned around an-and…one…one of those bastards…they got my wife! They ripped her throat out! And then…foolish boy…he…tackled the vampire…and it…it grabbed him and killed him!" Hector was sobbing now. He fell to the ground. Guinevere ran to his side and kneeled before him and took the man in her arms and cradled him.

"Hush, hush, there was nothing you could do. The vampire is to blame. We will keep your family safe now…hush…" Gwen always had a special talent for comforting people. She was the main reason he got through his father's death. Along with Merlin too. They helped him and Morgana. "Are you okay? If you can't tell us now, then it can wait." Arthur said.

"No, no, I want to continue. I noticed that the evil creature was wearing a certain symbol upon his shirt. It was a black snake hissing."

Gwen looked up at Arthur with a grave face. That confirmed their suspicions. That was the symbol of Cenred. They had their army of the Undead. "Thank you Hector. You can go back to your daughter and we'll make sure you have a warm bed, food, and anything else you require. I'm sure it was a long and tiring journey." Hector looked at Arthur with a grateful face. "Thank you Sire. I shall retire with my daughter." He left them and exited the room.

"Oh God. Poor girl. She's only eight years old and she witnessed the gruesome death of two family members." Gwen said. "Yes. Very true. And the symbol you know what that means." Arthur stated. "Yes. Cenred." Gwen replied. Then Arthur said, grimly:

"Cenred has attacked and devestated my people. He has declared war on Camelot."


End file.
